Joh 17:9 | RWP | e4.org | I pray ( εγω ερωτω ). Request, not question, as in . Not for the world ( ου περ του κοσμου ). Now at this point in the prayer Christ means. In verse Jesus does pray for the world (for future believers) that it may believe (verse ). God loves the whole world ( ). Christ died for sinners ( ) and prayed for sinners ( ) and intercedes for sinners ( .; ; ). For those whom ( περ ων ). A condensed and common Greek idiom for περ τουτων ους with τουτων (the demonstrative antecedent) omitted and the relative ους attracted from the accusative ους (object of δεδωκας ) to the case (genitive) of the omitted antecedent.

‏ John 17:9

I pray ( εγω ερωτω ). Request, not question, as in 16:23.

Not for the world ( ου περ του κοσμου ). Now at this point in the prayer Christ means. In verse 19 Jesus does pray for the world (for future believers) that it may believe (verse 21). God loves the whole world (3:16). Christ died for sinners (Ro 5:8) and prayed for sinners (Lu 23:34) and intercedes for sinners (1Jo 2:1f.; Ro 8:34; Heb 7:25).

For those whom ( περ ων ). A condensed and common Greek idiom for περ τουτων ους with τουτων (the demonstrative antecedent) omitted and the relative ους attracted from the accusative ους (object of δεδωκας ) to the case (genitive) of the omitted antecedent.